//------------------------------// // Crystal Empire War: Part 4 // Story: Spike the Fairy // by PonyJoel //------------------------------// Princess Celestia and Luna watch as Midnight Sparkle and Lord Tirek battle in the skies. The two titans clash with the magic they stole from many creatures throughout their travel. Lord Tirek uses his magic power to pull Midnight Sparkle closer to him. Midnight Sparkle shoots a crimson fireball at Lord Tirek. It explodes on contact, but Lord Tirek smirks; He doesn't sustain any injury from the impact. He tosses Midnight Sparkle to the ground hard. "Demon Spiral Death!" Midnight Sparkle's hands are aqua blue and crimson red. She combined the two to create a spiral flare with immense force and destructive power at Lord Tirek. Lord Tirek unleashes a surge of destructive magic on Midnight Sparkle like a cannon. The two attacks intercede with one another, trying to penetrate each other. Midnight Sparkle and Lord Tirek generate enough force to shatter the sounding area. Midnight Sparkle stands tall, wiping some blood off her cheek. It appears the impact caused some damage to her facial structure. Lord Tirek marks his face with his blood. Now he's serious. Midnight Sparkle and Lord Tirek collide in close-quarter combat. The two use their strengths to gain an upper advantage; Punches, headbutts, and close-quarter use of magic used in this battle. A clone of Discord appears next to Princess Celestia and Luna. "Geez," The clone is horrified to see the two Princesses tattered, bruised, and hornless. "I'll fix you two up. First, we need to separate ourselves from the carnage," The clone uses his magic to teleport to the Crystal Castle. A second after the clone teleports the Princesses away, Midnight Sparkle lands at the spot where the Princesses were lying. She looks at Lord Tirek hovering above her. "It seems while I absorbed power from those Yaks, Buffalos, Dragons, Ponies, and Changelings, you were delaying the defeat of the Princesses. The Alicorn Magic you absorbed doesn't match the power I have!" Lord Tirek laughs in triumph. "Now, prepare to die like all the other sheep on this planet!" "I granted you the power and Demon Curse, and I can strip it!" Midnight Sparkle's hands glow black, and with one hand, she pulls out the Demon Curse she lent to Lord Tirek. Lord Tirek tries to keep his mouth shut, but it does nothing for him. The essence of the Demon Curse purges from his body and returns to Midnight Sparkle. However, the magic and power Lord Tirek has remained. Lord Tirek loses his demonic form and reverts to his usual centaur appearance. "You can keep the Demon Curse. It's overrated like you. I still have more power than you!" Lord Tirek levitates mountains around him. "Try dodging this!" Lord Tirek chucks the mountains at Midnight Sparkle. Midnight Sparkle's hands glow aqua blue. Now that she has a hundred percent of her Demon Curse, she creates a fire wave melting the mountains before it touches her. "WHAT!?" Lord Tirek is dumbfounded by how quickly Midnight Sparkle melted the mountains. "You stupid centaur. Throughout the time. I fought while not sustaining a hundred percent of my Demon Curses. You see, I lend my pawns a fraction of its power, but no one displayed the true horrors of my Demon Curse. I'm going show you why you be afraid when a demon strikes down a devil-wannabe." Lord Tirek powers up and fully blast Midnight Sparkle with all of his destructive power. Lord Tirek puts so much effort into this blast it causes him to have a migraine. "Try walking out of that!" Lord Tirek laughs. He stops laughing when he sees Midnight Sparkle walking unscathed. "WHAAAAAAT!" "I told you. I'm going to show you why you should be afraid when a demon strikes down a devil-wanna be," Midnight calmly states while her right hand glows orange-black. Lord Tirek is losing magic power by the second. He pants a bit while Midnight Sparkle slowly walks up to him. "Stay back..," Lord Tirek feels his magic power draining while exerting it into the attack still. "You seem tired, Old-Man!" Midnight Sparkle grabs Lord Tirek's throat, choking him into submission. Midnight's left hand glows green, and she absorbs all of Lord Tirek's magic power. Lord Tirek reverts to his weakened state. She tosses Lord Tirek to the ground with brute force. Lord Tirek lands on his back, and due to Midnight Sparkle's immense strength, his back breaks on impact. Lord Tirek groans in agony due to the pain. Midnight Sparkle walks up to Lord Tirek, putting her boot near his throat, looking down at him. "I could kill you, but I rather watch you squirm a bit more," Midnight Sparkle swipes her right hand. Orange-Black orbs appear all around Lord Tirek. "Detonate," Midnight Sparkle commands the orbs to detonate. Lord Tirek wails in agony while the explosions go off; the burning sensation causes Lord Tirek to suffer fourth-degree burns. The Demon Curse goes through the skin and underlying tissue, the muscles, and the bone structure of Lord Tirek. He loses mobility due to the curse. "You.., monster..," Lord Tirek mutters. Never in his life had he felt this kind of pain until today. "I'm the Princess of Friendship. I'm no monster when I restart the timeline and fix the one event that caused all of this. You want to blame someone for the pain, blame Spike. It's his fault that things can't go my way," Midnight Sparkle takes off. Lord Tirek looks at the skies. "If I'm unable to stop that wretched demon, who will?" At the Crystal Castle, many clones of Discord are tending to the wounded. Many creatures have suffered many injuries during the clash. Prince Rutherford is one of those creatures who got hit by Lord Tirek's attack and survived. Gilda, Thorax, and Ember are regrouping the creatures to prepare for another assault. Chrysalis notices the clone of Discord arriving with Princess Celestia and Luna. She gallops to check on them and gasps. "Are you two..?" "We're fine, Chrysalis," Princess Luna answers. "Banged up against Midnight Sparkle. She's fighting Lord Tirek," Princess Celestia replies. The clone of Discord snaps his claw, healing the two Alicorns and restoring their magic and horns. "Thanks, Discord," Princess Celestia stretches her body. "You're welcome. What are we going to do now?" The clone asks. "Prepare for another assault," Princess Celestia replies. She sees that Midnight Sparkle is on the horizon. Princess Cadance gallops to the Princesses, the clone, and Chrysalis. "Cadance?" "We have a problem," Princess Cadance points at the skies. They turn to see Midnight Sparkle coming to the Crystal Empire. "She's persistent and relentless," The clone said, watching Midnight Sparkle fly. Another clone comes into the fray. "We're not sure if you heard, but Lord Tirek is defeated. We can only stall for time until the original gives us a way to use Grogar's Bell against Midnight Sparkle." "That's what we'll do. Until Discord gives us keys to victory, we're going to delay Midnight's plan. Luna, you ready for round two?" "I am, Celestia," Princess Luna flaps her wings. "You're not going alone," Princess Cadance flaps hers. "She's right. We should keep Midnight Sparkle occupied while our forces regroup. Tempest and her defense team will be vital," Chrysalis said. "Let's go," Princess Celestia takes flight. Princess Luna, Cadance, and Chrysalis follow her. Tempest sees from her binoculars Midnight Sparkle advancing. She sounds the alarms for the Storm Nation Airforce to partake in battle. The Griffons, Dragons, and Changelings that stood behind now go forth into battle. "So much for fighting the Storm King, huh?" Grubber said to Tempest. "He was a fool for trusting a demon. I find it ironic. Promises failing due to being lied to," Tempest couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "I know. Now, let's stop this demon once and for all!" Grubber shouts. Midnight Sparkle arrives at the Crystal Empire. She scans the area and sees many creatures aligning themselves. What takes her by surprise is how quickly the Princesses are healed and flying with Princess Cadance and Chrysalis. "So, they want to die rather than live to watch their new life happening? So be it," Midnight Sparkle notices the Crystal Heart and the pearl next to each other from afar. She disregards the protectors of the relics. "I'll harness the magic of the two and create a better tomorrow!" Midnight Sparkle maniacally laughs.